Wax applicator



March' 10,1959 E. F. MANN 2,876,475

WAX APPLICATOR Filed July 25, 1955 MOL United Stvates Patent() WAX APPLICATOR Application July 25, 1955, Serial No. 524,140

Claims priority, application Great Britain September 16, 1954 2 Claims. (Cl. 15-131) The instant invention relates to a wax applicator for use in conjunction with a floor polisher and more specifically to an improved wiper blade for such wax applicator.

The instant invention in a wiper blade for a wax applicator is intended to be used with a wax applicator which can be attached to a tioor polishing machine, so that the wax may be applied to a surface concurrently with the polishing operation. The' novel wax" applicator wiper blade is an improvement over the construction disclosed in copending application Ser. No. 422,883, led on April 13, 1954, now Patent Number 2,832,978, and assigned to the assignee of the present application. Reference may be had to the previously tiled application for a detailed description of the organized structure comprising the wax applicator and the polishing machine.

The wax applicator generally comprises a housing within which-there is contained a iiexible wall wax reservoir and a wiper blade depending from the reservoir formed with an internal passageway for conducting the wax from the reservoir to a surface to be waxed. The end of the wiper blade is disposed in contiguity to the surface for spreading the wax thereon, and pressure is applied to the wax reservoir to compress the same for feeding the wax therefrom to the wiper blade by means of pressure.

In accordance with the instant invention, the wiper blade comprises oppositely disposed walls terminating in lips, the ends of which are disposed in contact with the surface. The lips are bridged by a web extending the length of the wiper blade and alternate portions of the web are offset from the lip ends to form slots for delivering the Wax to the surface. The portions of the web intermediate the slots bridge the ends of the lips to form surface contacting areas which operate in conjunction with the ends of the lips to spread the wax on the surface. Each of the web portions forming the slots includes an aperture communicating with the passageway in the wiper blade, and the wax is fed through the apertures to the slots for delivery to the surface, the ends of the lips and the surface contacting areas of the webs acting to spread the wax on the surface.

Accordingly, it is the object of the instant invention to provide a wax applicator comprising a novel wiper blade which is adapted to be disposed adjacent a surface to be waxed for the purpose of delivering wax to the surface, and spreading the same thereover preparatory to polishing that surface.

While the invention has been generally described, it will be best understood, and further objects and advantages thereof will 'be apparent to those skilled in the art, upon consideration of the detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which follows, reference being had to the drawings in which:

Figure 1 is an elevational View of a polishing machine embodying a wax applicator which includes the wiper blade of the instant invention,

Figure 2 is a plan view of the wiper blade of the instant invention,

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the wax applicator and Figure 4 isa sectional view of the wiper blade taken,

on the line 4-4 in Fig. 2.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, there is illustrated a polishing machine 10 comprising a housing 11 within which there is enclosed a motor drive means to rotate a pair of counter-rotating surface engaging and polishing brushes 12. A bail 13 pivotally secured on opposite sides of the housing 11 supports aA manipulating handle 14 by means of which the polishing machine 10 may be guided over the surface. A conductor cord 15 running down along the length of the handle 14 supplies power to the motor drive means. A wax applicator 16 is supported at the rear of the polisher housing 11 by a latching structure 17 which permits the wax applicator 16 to be elevated' to an inoperative position spaced from the surface, or to be depressed to the operative position as illustrated in Fig. l in which the wiper blade 23 is in contact with the surface. The latching structure 17 is not described in detail herein as it forms no part of the instant invention, and it is described in co-pending application Ser. No. 422,883 referred to above.

The wax applicator 16 comprises a rigid housing 18, which may be made of plastic or like material, and encloses a wax reservoir 19 which is open at its bottom and is formed with a flange 20 of substantial thickness surrounding the open bottom. The flange 20 is secured to the rim of the housing 16 for positively holding the wax reservoir 19 therewithin. The wax reservoir 19 is made of a yieldable material, so that the walls thereof may be compressed to feed wax therefrom by pressure. The top ofthe housing 16 includes a nipple 21 on which there is telescoped the end of a tube 22 which leads to a compressible bulb or like means secured to the handle 14 to be squeezed by the operator to apply pressure to the interior of the housing 16 for collapsing the walls of the flexible reservoir 19 and feeding wax therefrom as aforementioned.

The novel wiper blade 23 of the instant invention depends from the bottom of the wax reservoir 19. The wiper blade 23 is formed at its base with a relatively wide, laterally extending perimetral flange 24 which abuts the flange 20 surrounding the open bottom of the wax reservoir 19. A face plate 2S, preferably made of metal, overlies 'the tlange 24 and is formed with a plurality of holes 26 which are aligned with similarily disposed holes in the ange 24. The holes 26 are adapted to receive thumb screws 27 threaded into lands (not illustrated) on the housing 18 for securing the wiper blade 23 to the bottom of the wax reservoir 19. The abutting portions of the flanges 20, 24 form a seal therebetween to prevent the leakage of wax at the junction.

The wiper blade 23 comprises oppositely disposed walls 28 spaced from each other to define a passageway in the wiper blade 23 for the wax. The walls 2S terminate in oppositely disposed lips 29 which are bridged by an integral transversely extending web.

The transversely extending web comprises portions 31 which are offset from the ends of the lips 29 to form wax delivering slots 32. Each of the web portions 31 includes an aperture 33 providing communication between the pasageway intermediate the walls 28 and the wax delivering slot 32. ,The web portions 34 intermediate the offset web portions 31 fbridge the ends of the lips 29 and form surface wiping areas. Thus the oEsets in the web form alternate wax delivering slots 32 and surface contacting wiping portions 34.

In the operation of the wax applicator, the operator applies pressure to the interior of the housing 16 through the tube 22, thereby compressing the yieldable walls of the wax reservoir 19 to force wax therefrom under pres- -3 sure to the passageway-intermediate the walls 28 of the wax applicator wiper blade '23. The pressure applied to the wax forces it through the apertures 33 into the slots 32 for distribution onto the surface. The wiper blade 23 is made of yieldable material so that when the pressure is applied to the wax, the aperture 33 will be distend'ed to facilitate the feed ofthe wax therethrough and to dislodge any wax that may be dried therein. After the wax is delivered to the surface by the slots 32, the edges of the lips 29 andthe surface contacting areas 34 of the web traverse the surface to spread the wax thereover for, polishing the surface by means of the counter rotating brushes 12. In traversing the surface, the wiper blade ilexes in accordance with the direction of movement, as illustrated in Fig. 3. vBy virtue of the yformation of the web bridging the lips 29, in which the'web is, formed with alternate offset portions to provide the wax delivering slots 32, closing and sealing of the latter is prevented so that effective wax distribution Ais hady at all times in accordance with the operation described herein.

The instant invention .in a novel wiper blade for a wax applicator has been described in detail herein as embodied in a preferred construction, which is considered to be exemplary of the invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the preferred construction is subject to modications falling within the scope of the invention, and accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited except as set forth in the claims which follow.

In the claims:

l. A wax applicator comprising a hollow elongated wiper blade of iieXible resilient material formed by oppositely disposed walls, said walls -being spaced from each other to form a passageway for wax to be fed to a surface, a transverse web connecting the walls at the lower ends thereof, portions of said web being upwardly oset from the lower ends of said walls so as to form wax delivering aereas t slots and surface contacting wiping portions arranged alternately along 'the lower end of s'aid blade 'and an aperture connecting each of said wax delivering slots to said passageway whereby wax may be delivered from said passageway through said apertures to said wax de liven'ng slots for spreading by said surface contacting portions.

2. A wax applicator comprising a hollow elongated wiper blade of Jiieirilxle resilient material having oppositely vdisposed walls spaced from each other to form a passageway for wax to be fed to a surface, said walls terminating in-lips, the ends of which areadapted to contact a surface `for wiping wax thereon, said lips being bridged by a webA eiitending the length of th'e blade, portions of the web being otset from the lower ends of the lips to form alternate wax delivering slots and surface contacting wiping portions along the length of the lower end of said blade, said web being formed with an aperture between each of said wait delivering slots and said passageway whereby wax may be delivered from said passageway through said apertures to said wax delivering slots -for spreading action by said lips lincluding said surface contacting wiping portions.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNTED STATES PATENTS 1,795,964 @Connor Mar. 10, 1931 1,867,553 Atwood July 19, 1932 1,982,345 Kirby Nov. 27, 1934 2,168,692 Vidal Aug. 8, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS 495,206 Germany Apr. 3, 1930 762,307 Great Britain Nov. 28, 1956 1,103,455 France May 25, 1955 

